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A 31-year-old East Side man who secretly videotaped co-workers, including one minor, in the
restroom of a Canal Winchester pet store is learning disabled and socially awkward, his attorney
told a Franklin County judge yesterday.

Nelson J. Brewer of S. Hampton Road lives with his mother and has no friends, and a prison
sentence “would be a detriment to him,” Joseph Scott said.

Common Pleas Judge Tim Horton told Brewer that a lifetime of struggling to adjust to society “
doesn’t give you the right to become a complete creep. That’s how you’ll be labeled from here on
out. That’s a penalty in and of itself.”

Horton sentenced him to six months in the Franklin County Community-Based Correctional Facility
and placed him on probation for three years. Brewer must register as a sex offender every six
months for the next 25 years.

He
pleaded guilty in December to two counts of illegal use of a minor in
nudity-oriented material, one felony count of voyeurism and three misdemeanor counts of
voyeurism.

Brewer was an employee at Jack’s Pets, 6334 Gender Rd., when he
concealed a camera in the restroom on various days from August to October,
videotaping female employees as they used the toilet. One of the employees discovered the camera
after noticing a blinking light in a paper-towel dispenser.

A forensic analysis of Brewer’s home computer found that he had downloaded the videos in files
that were catalogued by each employee’s name. All were adults, with the exception of a
17-year-girl.

Brewer apologized in court, saying he was “deeply remorseful” and hadn’t understood “how serious
the offenses were. If I had known, I never would have done it.”

None of the victims attended the hearing, but Assistant Prosecutor Megan Jewett said they ware
harmed psychologically and some no longer are comfortable using public restrooms.

She argued that Brewer deserved a prison sentence based on the “planning, thought and
calculation” that went into obtaining specialized video equipment, concealing it in the restroom
and taking it home at night to download the videos.

“Because he might be bullied in prison is not a reason to not send him there,” she said.

The judge said that a presentencing investigation found that Brewer, who is undergoing
counseling, is a low risk for re-offending.